It began with the preparations for my 2.5 month business trip to Zurich, as I was cramming my bag with almost every other thing. When you have the luxury of business class travel, extra baggage is least of your worries- a generous 64kg baggage is what I was permitted to carry!

Parting with my daughter and mom was the most difficult thing but as I began a new journey on my own for these few months, I looked forward to new experiences , learnings and things to reflect upon.

As the month drew to a close, I had lots to be thankful for and it was quite a different list as compared to one that I usually have.

Home is where the heart is, amongst our people. But travelling to a distant land and being alone on one of the biggest Indian festivals Diwali can be quite a dampener. Thats when the unexpected happens. A kind soul and blogger friend Nidhi who lives here invites me over and I have a fab time celebrating Diwali and eating to my heart’s content – I would never have imagined a Diwali with sparkers on a balcony, on a chilly night in Zurich. Thankful to Nidhi and her friends who made me feel at home

Its quite unlikely to experience acts of kindness from strangers in India, thats been my experience in general. But I was pleasantly surprised to have been showered with kindness in abundance from people here. On my first day I went to have a cup of coffee and the lady who is an Indian offered me a free apple. In fact whenever I visit that store, I always get a free apple from her. There was this girl then who held the door of the train as I was puffing and panting trying to reach in time before it left the station. Someone who held the door for me , gave me a smile, it made a lot of difference by creating positive vibes.

Its a month I have moved here and I see my daughter on skype-and talk to her though the 3 year old is more interested in playing with her friends after the “hi Mumma” but I miss having her around, cuddling her, bathing her, feeding her. She seems all grown up all of a sudden as mum tells me that she has started writing, eating independently – I feel that I have missed out on things. But it was a well thought out decision and I would rather stay positive. A heartfelt thanks to my mom for braving it all- raising our girl single handed. What would we do without Mums?

The past few days have been tough – I have the sudden sense of loneliness , the overcast sky and showers doesn’t help to cheer me up. I get into this mood where everything seems bleak- though thats now how I am. I am a positive person most of the time but there are these occasional days when I drown myself in sorrow. There have been a few friends who have been standing by me, constantly , checking on me, making me laugh, distract me, talk about things I like – blogs and books and sometimes just being around, hearing me out.

I have always been a person with handful of friends. Online friendships was something I could never fathom but now I have some of my closest friends as the virtual ones. Some I have never met, some I met once or twice but the bond is so strong. This support system is what I am grateful for.

October saw me participate in the Write Tribe Pro Blogger Challenge. I had a chance to forge bonds with some new bloggers like Vinodini ,Sunitha and Ryan. Most of my posts were very well received, especially this one on finding love outside marriage and the one about my decision to take up this work assignment though it meant staying away from my child. One of the greatest joys of blogging is this awesome community support , as some of the readers touch your soul with their heartwarming comments and as time passes new bonds are formed.

I have never really said a thank you to my husband and here is the time to do it. Having an ambitious wife is not easy- she is super ambitious about her career, then about her blogging which leaves her with very little time for you- of cos the baby comes before you(hubby). We have had our share of terrible times but as he says “My world is small and you are a big part of it”, I have felt this quite strongly in the time I have been living apart. This support, not in words but in deeds, he is a man of few words- being around,putting up with my outbursts and sending me that message the next day once I have cooled down- I am thankful for his presence in my life. We haven’t been spending time together and thats what we need the most. As he travels to Zurich tomorrow for 2 weeks, I hope we can rekindle our romance. You may see me lesser on the blog.

All in all, its been a fabulous month where I travelled to many destinations including the dream city Paris, solo travel was a great experience and I see myself in a new light. I was quite surprised at how comfortable I was in traveling alone and I actually enjoyed the experience so much.Living alone, spending time on things I like – reading, blogging, eating alone it has been different from the routine but enjoyable nevertheless.

I thank God for blessing me with sunshine in my life- there are those cloudy days which seem so long and it feels like they will suck the happiness out of me, but the cloud disappears after a while and the sun shines bright again. It has quite a lot to do with training your mind to fight those inner demons and not let them conquer you.

Hoping that November is filled with more sunshine, warmth, love, happiness and gratitude .

Share this:

Like this:

Published by Akshata Ram

Chartered Accountant, Story Teller, Dreamer, Voracious Reader, Blogger, Mommy to a little munchkin, Shopaholic, Day Dreamer.Passionate about my career in the corporate world and aspire to break the glass ceiling, at the same time nurture my passion for writing. My niche area is short stories, I also write on parenting, sexism, life's experiences, micro blogs and flash fiction. I have won the best Parenting blog post at mycity4kids.com the largest parenting website in India, 4 times and several of my posts have been published in the #MostPopular category on this site garnering millions of views. I also write on Bonobology, Rivo Kids, Women's Web and Youth Ki Awaaz. I was chosen as one of the top 10 Indian women bloggers to be followed by Women's Web in 2017. Contact me at akshata.ram@gmail.com
View all posts by Akshata Ram

I was very pleased to read your post. I don’t believe I have visited you much. My hope is that could change. Your words are refreshing and I have many Indian friends, most online, but a few nearby. I loved your statement:
Online friendships was something I could never fathom but now I have some of my closest friends as
the virtual ones. Some I have never met, some I met once or twice but the bond is so strong. This
support system is what I am grateful for.
So very true!
Thank you for being one of my followers and, now, hopefully, friend.
Scott

It’s great connecting with you, Akshata! Your solo travel posts kind of happened around the time I was writing about my travel posts too. So it kind of got us together, I guess. Hope you have a lovely time for the remainder of your trip. Keep posting!

So happy to read this post. Amazed, but thrilled, you managed to find a blogger friend in Switzerland to celebrate Diwali with. I am curious, did your luggage weigh more than you? Hope you are having a naughty and nice time with your husband. Christmas is close and Santa can balance out his list 😉

That is a straight from the heart post. It is very important to be thankful. It is good to know that you spent the Diwali with a fellow blogger.Our blogging community rocks. All the best to you. Hopw you have a equally beautiful November.

By the time you read this, your handsome husband will have joined you – so I forgive you if you don’t reply for the next two weeks! Your mentions of kindnesses from strangers made me think of this video, and the importance of paying it forward – as well as the expression, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Lead by example, and the world will be a better place for it. Enjoy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwAYpLVyeFU

I remember reading tbose posts. They are beautifully written. And I love your travel pictures. How I wish I could visit it too 😀 it’s so wonderful to have supportive family. That’s something to be grateful about always 😀hope you have an awesome time with your husband.

Going off leaving your kid behind is never easy. But kids are wonderfully understanding–most of the time as long as they have someone they’re close to with them–they’re just fine. It is the traveling parent who feels the loneliness. Hugs! So glad you had great company for Diwali. Festivals can make you especially conscious when you are away from home. Friends are such a blessing. It is lovely to read your gratitude post, Akshata. Thank you for joining me. Love and hugs!